The Fieldwork Experience Assessment Tool (FEAT) identifies essential characteristics for each of three component areas related to your fieldwork site. It can assess the demands of the environment, the fieldwork educator, and the student. It is a look at the interaction between these three and a rating of the demands and the skills. It looks at the balance between these three components and opens the topics for discussion and problem solving. This may be very helpful to both of you.

Additionally, an article titled Creating a Successful Fieldwork Experience: The Fieldwork Experience Assessment Tool was published in OT Practice, March 2002, AOTA Continuing Education Article. It discusses the use of the FEAT and provides some examples. This form was created by the American Occupational Therapy Association-Fieldwork Research Team- Karen Atler, Karmen Brown, Lu Ann Griswold, Wendy Krupnick, Luz Muniz de Melandez, and Patricia Stutz-Tanenbaum.

There are many articles written about learning styles. Most articles focus on understanding yourself better and using the information to identify what you need to do differently to be successful in classes and situations. Each test provides some different information.

We are only beginning to think about the relationship between the fieldwork supervisor and the student. What if you find that you and the student test very differently and learn in different ways? What if you find that the student is very similar to you in learning styles? It may shed some light on why students need a variety of experiences to learn and how that may be different from student to student. Most of our OT Students have taken at least one of these self assessments, so you can feel comfortable opening up this topic for discussion to learn more about them and to share with them about your learning styles.

There are many different tests developed to assess your learning style and personality characteristics and how that impacts your learning.

Or, you may want to consider the Paragon Learning Styles Inventory. This is similar to the Myers Briggs in information. This service is currently offered on line free to individuals. Find out which of the sixteen learning styles you fit and read about what it says. This can be found at http://www.oswego.edu/plsi/tKETEST.HTM Click on “Take the PLSI" in the left hand corner of the screen. Proceed to take the test and get your scores (a printout is recommended). Review what these scores mean.